Syria airport source says Iranians, Israelis banned from entry

Iranians and Israelis have been banned from flying to Syria, which is under new leadership since last month’s overthrow of long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad, an airport source said.International flights resumed at Syria’s main airport in Damascus on January 7, almost a month after Islamist-led rebels ousted Assad after a lightning offensive.Just a few airlines have since resumed or announced they will resume flights to Syria.A Damascus airport source said the facility’s authorities told airlines operating in Syria not to allow Israelis and Iranians to board flights to the country.The source, not being authorized to brief the media, spoke on condition of anonymity on Thursday.Syria and Israel are technically at war and do not have diplomatic ties, and Israeli nationals have long been unable to enter the country.Iran was a major backer of Assad’s government, but Damascus-Tehran relations have been on ice since Assad’s overthrow.Two airlines appeared to be complying with the measures, which Syria’s interim authorities have not announced publicly.A travel company source in Damascus said the firm “received instructions from Qatar Airlines indicating it is currently not possible to book flights for Iranians wishing to travel to Damascus”.”However, we have not received any related official instructions from the transport ministry,” the source added, also requesting anonymity.Qatar Airways was the first international carrier to announce it would resume flying to Damascus.Turkish Airlines said Wednesday it would resume flights to Damascus from January 23 after more than a decade.A statement on the Turkish Airlines website said that “in accordance with recent decisions taken by the Syrian Arab Republic authorities, certain rules have been established for passengers entering Syria”.”Citizens of all countries except Israel can enter the country,” it said.However, it also said that Iranians “can only enter the country with prior authorization”, rather than indicating that they had been banned.